“You don’t have to see the entire staircase to take the first step” is one of my favorite quotes by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Sometimes we do not take steps to grow our business because of fear. The reason you started your business was because of your vision but your EGO stops you from making the difference you know that you were created to make. Misguidedly, you may be thinking that the only way you can gain your ideal clients is by pounding the pavement and getting referrals. While these are viable ways to grow your business it can happen much faster when you develop a marketing system to use speaking to grow your business.
Speaking helps build creditability. Your products and services give you an immediate presence in the marketplace. If you learn to leverage your presence by speaking about your business, your presence will grow and your ideal clients will come to find you and begin to work directly with you. In fact, I encourage you to take every opportunity to share information about your business.
Go to your local Chamber of Commerce and ask to speak at their meetings. In the last year, I spoke at five different Chamber events and each speaking engagement resulted in major contracts. Your ideal clients are attending Chamber events and they are looking for a solution to the problem they have right now. I’d also recommend seeking out other networking groups via www.meetup.com. They are always looking for speakers to come in and share their expertise. The key is to ensure that you add value, very high value, so that the participants are learning how they can benefit from your Incredible Factor. I recommend researching the nature of the group you are seeking out to speak to and verify that your ideas clients are there. Sometimes it is a great idea to pick up the phone and talk to the meeting organizer in advance of sending a proposal to be a speaker. Another suggestion, if the group allows open visitors is to attend and meet everyone in person. If you do, remember the article “You Only Get 30 Seconds,” so you can be sure to maximize your introduction to the key leaders of the networking group.
It can be a challenge to funnel all of your knowledge and expertise into a well crafter signature talk that adds value and attracts your ideal clients. I’d love to share some of my pointers with you to get you to make sure that attendees see you as the only solution to the problems they are currently experiencing. Here are a few tips:
Start by pulling them in
Remember those pull marketing questions I shared with you a few weeks back? Engage your audience immediately by letting them know that you’ve got the solution to their problem and the best way to do that is with a powerful leading questions that grabs them immediately and clearly say, ‘I know what you need and I’m here to demonstrate that I’m the solution.”
Begin with the End in mind
This principle is taken from Stephen Covey’s The 7 habits of highly Effective People and adapted to make sure that your signature talk is dazzling and does exactly what you intend for it to do. The power of intention and visualization of the over all theme and message you want to leave with the listeners is key here. Start your speech with the ending in mind. What is the purpose of your message? Once you have this definitive point prepared as an objective, it should drive all else beneath it. Please be sure that each of your objectives (3 to 5) are measurable, have a time frame, and are absolutely easily to attain.
Share testimonials from satisfied clients
Case studies and testimonials help your listeners to see you as the solution to the problem. It also helps them to find a place to identify with people that you’ve helped previously. You always want to weave these stories into your message to sell who you are and how you help your ideal clients without being a used car salesman. It will take skill to do this so practice offering a key point and illustrating by telling a client success story to drive home the value of having the information to resolve the problem the objective references.
Repeat what’s essential that they take away
Remember, repetition is the mother of skill. Key learning objectives should be repeated in a few different ways so that your listeners can be clear that you can help them solve their problem. It also helps to solidify in each listeneers mind that you are clear at what you do and how you can help.
Give high value content
The whole reason you are speaking to the group is because you have high value information to share with them that can help them to get closer to solving a problem. Be sure that you don’t “fluff” your way through the talk but instead offer insight that truly shows off your expertise. Using statistics and a few significant steps that can lead to solving a problem is also key. Trust me, fluff will get you know where but high value, high content information will turn prospects into paying clients.
Smile and incite laughter
You’re probably going to be tense if you’re not a professional speaker. Tell a related joke, be yourself and show your fun side. Loosen up. No one wants to work with a stick in the mud. Remember, 1 minute of laughter boosts your immune system for 24 hours. Your Incredible Factor is magnetic and engaging, be sure that your communication style reflects that. You want your ideal clients to know that not only will you solve their problem, but you will have a good time while you’re doing it!
Offer a powerful Call to Action and Irresistible Offer
Remember the reason why you are speaking: to build your business. And although you will not be a used car salesman, your goal is to ensure that your ideal clients know how they can learn more about working directly with you. You want to ensure that you offer a powerful call to action – give them a task to complete, the next step to take so that they can get the full solution to their problem. Please note: Although you MUST offer a high value, high content presentation, you should not solve their problem during your free talk. You must invoke a reaction and a need to learn more. If you have a product that can aid the listeners, offer it in an irresistible way, so that they feel that because you gave all this value, they must continue the experience by taking you home with them.
Thank the audience and follow up
You’ve heard it said that the “fortune is in the follow up.” Be sure to pass a clip board to collect names and email addresses for your mailing list to keep them abreast of future events, products and services. Add them immediately so that they can get into your auto responder series and get to know you better. Send a thank you card to the meeting organizers soliciting feedback to be used as a testimonial to help you speak to more groups in the future. Some won’t buy on the spot, but if you follow up with them, they will learn more and become a client if you’ve done your job correctly.
You see, speaking to build your business just got a little bit easier.
Be Incredible,
Darnyelle
©2010 by Darnyelle A. Jervey. All Rights Reserved. Darnyelle A. Jervey, The Incredible Factor Business Mentor and Coach, is the founder of Incredible One Enterprises, LLC and the Leverage Your Incredible Factor System ® a proven step by step program for turning your passion into profit. For more information and a FREE audio “How to Use Your Incredible Factor to Quantum Leap in Business” visit https://www.incredibleoneenterprises.com.
